Browned Butter & Sage Pumpkin Ravioli

433.  It's Autumn and I love when the seasonal options are made available.  Trader Joes never disappoints with a variety of spice, pumpkin and squash flavored items.

The pumpkin ravioli in the fresh refrigerated section was a must have!  

In a large frying pan I melted 1 stick of salted butter and let it bubble away until all the foam disappears and the butter turns a nutty brown color.  All the milk solids drop to the bottom and toast to wonderful buttery bits.  I then placed my fresh sage leaves in the butter and they crisp up rapidly.  Then remove them to a paper towel to use as garnish.  The sage flavors the browned butter.

On the side I have water boiling and add the fresh Pumpkin Ravioli.  It is so brightly colored yellow on one side and orange on the other filled with pumpkin.

After the sage is removed I added chopped garlic, about 2 cloves.  It will simmer and cook quickly.  

Spoon the finished pasta into the browned butter and turn the ravioli over to coat with the yummy butter.

You can add any vegetable or no vegetable at all to the dish.

Then place the crispy sage on top as a garnish and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.  WOW!!!  

"Why are terms of endearment always food? Honey, cookie, sugar, pumpkin."

- Jodi Picoult.

Tortellini Pasta Salad

 

418.  For a light refreshing evening meal simply make a pasta salad which incorporates veggies, pasta and light vinaigrette dressing.  But to elevate the salad, why not use tortellini instead?  Why do we only eat pasta salad when we are going to a picnic?  

I coated and baked chicken thighs to accompany the pasta salad.  While the chicken baked, I worked on my salad.  Of course making homemade tortellini would be the ultimate!  But I used the fresh pasta in the refrigerated section of Trader Joes.  It was a three-cheese filling and the regular sized tortellini.  I then chopped white onion, red radishes julienned, yellow bell pepper, cherry tomatoes halved, fresh green peas (also from Trader Joes), celery and celery tops chopped, fresh parsley and basil.  Seasoned with salt and pepper and a bit of garlic salt.  

I do not like to add radishes if my salad will be resting in the refrigerator.  They have a tendency to bleed onto the pasta.  Once my tortellini was perfectly boiled, I rinsed it in cold running water.  Placed it in the bowl with my chopped items then add olive oil and red wine vinegar.  Stir around till everything is evenly distributed and coated with the dressing.  If you think the salad will need more oil or vinegar, simply drizzle over, stir and taste for seasoning.  

What a simple and lovely pairing this meal proved to be.  And so refreshing on a hot summer day.

Trust me, tortellini is a great substitute in pasta salad.  And the filling could be any flavor you choose.  You only need to edit what you would mix with the pasta.  Now wouldn't pesto be a great addition?...hmmmm.

"Life is a combination of magic and pasta."

~Frederico Fellini

Chicken Piccata with Ziti

384.  Lemony,  cheesy,  warm and crispy chicken smothered with a lemon caper sauce nestled over hot ziti noodles.  Now that is an ideal meal.  I found this recipe that was Paleo, Whole30 and Keto compatible and it was so delicious, you could be fooled.

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This recipe is very similar to most chicken cutlet recipes cooked in sauce.  You can find this process in Polish, Italian, French and Russian cooking and so many other nationalities.   

It's what is for dinner tonight!  Try it!

Question:  "What is your favorite smell?"  "Basil or sautéing onions."  ~ Stanley Tucci

Chicken Piccata originated in Italy and was originally made from veal instead of chicken. Chicken Piccata is chicken cooked in lemony sauce and sometimes served with noodles. Piccata is a method of preparing food, not The dish as such : meat is sliced, coated, sautéed and served in a sauce. The dish originated in Italy using veal (veal piccata).

In Italy, veal piccata is considered as a “secondo” (second course) and would be served after the pasta course.

Manicotti

368.  A homespun Italian dish that always brings satisfaction and delight is Manicotti.  Traditional Italian cooks will make homemade crepes from egg and flour but with our modern means, you can pick up a box of pre-made manicotti shells in your grocery store.  I find that using a better brand of pasta you will have less breakage and the shells will stay round.
I made this recipe for my family  and it is always a great meal.  My mother-in-law would make Manicotti and called it "Man-ĭ-got".  It was always a favorite meal!

I used the Barilla brand of pasta and they were beautiful!  My filling was mixed together and I placed it in a large zip-lock bag.  I snipped the end and it worked well filling the pasta tubes.

I over-filled them so the cheese would not pour out during baking, lined them up and then poured sauce over.

Now, the beauty of the lined up shells bursting with cheese is a beautiful sight.  Once the sauce is poured over you loose that beautiful display.  Often, this is where some cooks will cover the shells only with a white sauce to bake.  It helps to maintain the moisture but maintains the beauty of the dish.  Then they serve red sauce on the side.  Stanley Tucci in his great cookbook The Tucci Cookbook makes this recipe but uses the homemade crêpes and white sauce.  Now this is a cookbook worth having in your collection.

Here is my recipe:

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I don't use too much cheese on top due to the over abundance of cheese in the dish itself.

Now...this is a scrumptious dish...or as stated in the movie "Big Night"...PARADISE! 

"You have to be serious about what you do but you mustn't take yourself seriously.  That way you'll be happier and ultimately you'll be more successful.  You'll be better at what you do."  ~ Stanley Tucci

"If you find that thing you love, it doesn't necessarily matter whether you do it well or not - you just need to do it."  ~ Stanley Tucci

Bolognese

359.  Italian Meat Sauce is a favorite for me often called Bolognese.  It is a one dish wonder and always is satisfying.  Here is my Bolognese recipe

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There are many different Bolognese recipes out there.  Some call for bay leaf, carrots and celery, fennel, wine, prosciutto, cream, leeks, and the list trails on.  Truly, it is a recipe that varies from person to person.  You can place in your Bolognese whatever you want...to your liking.  So go ahead and experiment, try different recipes and see which one you like the best.

"Mangia Tutti Mangia!"

"If kids can learn how to make a simple Bolognese Sauce, they will never go hungry.  It's pretty easy to cook pasta, but a good sauce is way more useful.  ~ Emeril Lagasse

Fettuccini Alfredo

356.  Valentine's Day is always approached with excitement and anticipation to enjoy loving words, thoughts and gifts of chocolate, jewelry or flowers.  Although, I always look forward to a luscious plate of Fettuccini Alfredo.  I say, it is on the same "love level" as chocolate, jewelry or flowers if not more-so.

Many chefs and cooks have their own version of this dish.  I seem to have settled on Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman's recipe.  You can find her recipe here.  Don't you just love her simplicity?

I made a convenient recipe card for you with just slight changes.  On occasion I will add frozen, cleaned shrimp to the boiling pasta just before it is al denté.  It's a nice, yummy surprise.

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DELICIOUS!!!

"Butter, cream and bacon. That's such a great foundation right there!"  

~ Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman

"I'm as flawed as the next person. But maybe I inspire women because I'm an example that you should never assume that where you are in life or what you're doing is going to remain exactly as it is forever."

~ Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman

Lamb Chops

270. Easter Dinner this year was inspired by Rachael Ray. On her 30 Minute Meals show she made Lamb Chops with Greens and Crispy Orecchiette Pasta with Walnut Rosemary Pesto. It looked so delicious and easy to prepare.

The most difficult part was locating lamb chops. You will like this recipe if you enjoy bold flavors. Lamb has a unique flavor along with the rosemary pesto.

LAMB CHOPS WITH GREENS AND CRISPY ORECCHIETTE PASTA WITH WALNUT-ROSEMARY PESTO

by Rachael Ray | on 05/26/08

INGREDIENTS

• Salt
• 1 pound orecchiette pasta
• 1 1/2 cups walnuts
• 7-8 stems rosemary, 1/4-1/3 cup leaves, loosely packed
• 2 cloves garlic, cracked from skin
• Black pepper
• 3 tablespoons plus 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided
• 1/2-3/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 4 shoulder lamb chops, bone-in, 8-10 ounces each
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Grated nutmeg, to taste
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 large heads kale, dinosaur kale or chard, chopped
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 2-3 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar

Serves 4

PREPARATION

Bring water to a boil for pasta, salt water and cook to al dente.

Toast walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat until golden and fragrant, a few minutes then cool. Add the nuts to a food processor with rosemary, 1 clove garlic, salt and pepper and turn processor on. Stream 1/3 cup EVOO into food processor to form pesto then scrape into a bowl and stir in about 3/4 cup grated cheese.

Rub chops with cut clove of garlic then season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon EVOO in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chops and cook 4 minutes each side for medium rare doneness.

While lamb cooks, drain pasta and return pot to heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil and butter in pasta pot and melt over medium heat. Place the pasta back in the pot and crisp 4-5 minutes, toasting the pasta. Season the pasta with salt and pepper and a little nutmeg.

Remove lamb from skillet and cover with foil to let meat settle. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon EVOO over medium-high to high heat. Add onions and greens and sear them. Season the greens with salt and pepper and wilt down, 3-4 minutes. Add chicken stock and vinegar and turn greens to coat in vinegar.

Serve a chop alongside greens. Top greens with toasted pasta and drizzle some pesto over everything.

I did not want to cover the chops with the greens and pasta, so we plated them side by side.

I also made buttered carrots for color on the plate.

We also enjoyed a coconut cream pie for dessert.

Happy Easter!

Our table was decorated with Polish sugar animals.

"The story of Easter is the story of God's wonderful window of divine surprise."

~Carl Knudsen

Stuffed Pasta Shells

268. Italian food is lovely! Always satisfying and delicious. While shopping the other day, I found a pack of specialty pasta shells made with semolina, beet and spinach pastas. My mind went immediately to the delightful meal of stuffed pasta shells.

My recipe is similar to many family recipes, and each is as different as the family it comes from. So I picked up a large 16 oz container of ricotta cheese, a pound of mozzarella, grated parmesan cheese, sauce and ground meat. After a pot of sauce was made with meatballs, I began to prepare my filling for the shells...and slightly boiled the pasta shells and rinsed and set them aside to cool.

I mix the entire container of ricotta cheese, 1 egg, 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, parsley and a couple shakes of garlic salt.

I covered the bottom of a baking dish with sauce. Then I set up an assembly line. One scoop, about 2 Tablespoons, into each pasta shell is adequate.

Continue to fill the entire bottom. Drizzle more sauce over the shells and finish using all the filling in the remaining shells. Then cover with the remaining shredded mozzarella cheese and cover with tin foil.

Bake 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. Then remove the tin foil and continue to bake till the cheese is beginning to brown.

Serve the shells hot, with meatballs, sausage, bread and salad.

Sooooo gooood!

"Give us this day our daily taste. Restore to us soups that spoons will not sink in and sauces which are never the same twice. Raise up among us stews with more gravy than we have bread to blot it with. Give us pasta with a hundred fillings."

~Robert Farrar Capon

Bow Tie Pasta with Shrimp and Asparagus

266. One of the easiest and delicious pasta dishes is my Pasta with Shrimp and Asparagus.

It's cheesy and creamy and everyone loves it.

I grate about a cup of Parmesan Cheese.

I bring a pot of water to a boil and add a pound of pasta. While the pasta is boiling, clean about 3 cups of shrimp and remove the shell, tails and vein. Set aside.

Next, I clean and cut a large bunch of fresh asparagus. Melt 2 Tablespoons of butter into a pan and add the asparagus. Salt lightly and saute till tender on medium heat.

When the pasta is just about done, I throw in my clean shrimp. They only take about 3 minutes to cook.

When the shrimp is pink and cooked, drain the pasta/shrimp.

Once the pasta/shrimp is fully drained, pour it back into the pot.

To the pot add 1/4 cup butter, 1 cup of heavy cream, salt and pepper, and 1 cup of grated parm cheese. Stir over medium heat till butter is melted and sauce thickens.

Plate the pasta and top with tender asparagus and a pinch of parm cheese.

It's the easy way to make alfredo sauce.

"Keep bees and grow asparagus, watch the tides and listen to the wind instead of the politicians..."

~Miriam Waddington